Boxwood - Eternally Green Long-liver

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

There are many wonderful boxwood labyrinths in the world, occupying whole hectares, up to a kilometer long, or even more. The most striking of them is the labyrinth in the Andrássy castle on the Hungarian-Slovak border of the 19th century, the labyrinth in the Villa Pisani of the 18th century, in which Napoleon himself is rumored to have lost his way, as well as the modern 2000 Peace Labyrinth. But not only labyrinths, hedges, but also living garden sculptures, all this is evergreen, resistant to any weather boxwood

Boxwood (Latin Buxus) - an evergreen shrub or tree of the Boxwood family. Under natural conditions, boxwood grows in the Mediterranean, East India and Southeast Asia. Currently, there are about 30 species. Let's talk about the most frost-resistant species: Boxwood evergreen Buxus sempervirens.

Some encyclopedic data

Natural habitat: Europe, Crimea and the Caucasus. Mainly as undergrowth of deciduous forests in moderately dry areas. This evergreen shrub grows about 3 m and 2 m wide, sometimes in the form of a tree with a short and strongly curved trunk. At the same time, garden, well-groomed bushes can reach 8 m in height. Leaves are ovoid, opposite, very dense, 1.5-3 cm in length. The color of the leaves is dark green, however, below the leaves are much lighter. The broadly branched shank root system provides good wind resistance at all heights. Boxwood seeds are a box up to 1 cm in size. Ripe boxes open into 3 parts, freeing the seeds. Boxwood is rich in alkaloids and is considered poisonous. Despite its high honey content, it is not recommended to use honey from boxwood. More than 20 alkaloids in leaves and wood protect the plant from most pests, making boxwood an unpretentious long-liver. In European castles, boxwood bushes have passed the 500-year mark and continue to grow.

Breeding methods for boxwood

The most effective way is grafting.

For cuttings, young shoots up to 10 cm are taken. The trunk at the base should lignify a little, more often this happens in the period from late June to early July. Cuttings are planted in a mixture of peat with garden soil on a 10 * 10 cm grid. On average, 75% of the shoots take root and this takes a month and a half. If the cuttings are in a greenhouse, then they hibernate there, and those planted in the open field are covered with spruce branches or other natural insulation for the winter. In the spring, the cuttings are planted in their permanent place.

Seed propagation is a tricky business. Boxwood seeds very quickly lose their germination and do not experience stratification. Moreover, fresh seeds often rot in a clean substrate. Modern chemistry helps in this matter: growth stimulants and a mixture of sand with a substrate 1: 1, gives more or less good germination. After the boxwood has matured enough (4-5 weeks), it is dived.

Boxwood care

No special care is required for the boxwood. But there are certain circumstances that should be taken into account when disembarking on your site. If you decide to create a sculpture from boxwood, it is advisable to plant it on the south side of the site. If a circular hedge is planned, then all sides are planted first, except for the south, southeast. And after a year or two (the colder the climate, the longer the interval) it is planted from the south side. A year later, the bushes are comparable in growth.

Wintering preparation is simple. If early frosts are characteristic in the climatic zone, then in August the ground at the root looses and is actively watered for 3 weeks. If the climate is warmer and frosts come in November, then active watering is transferred to the second half of September, early October. In winter, the bushes hibernate and, if the temperature drops below -30, then it is advisable to cover the trunk circle with crushed coniferous bark, mulch. In warm climates, leaf mulching is not recommended as leaf decay can contribute to the development of fungal diseases in boxwood, leading to foliage falling.

The most common problem that perplexes boxwood owners is the following point: in the spring the leaves may turn yellow and dry out. Everything blooms, grows, and the evergreen bush dries up, a paradox!

But this problem is caused precisely by improper preparation for wintering. If there were severe frosts in winter, and the trunk circle was not covered, then the first spring sun warms the foliage and encourages active vegetation, while the roots are in deep dormancy and are not able to provide adequate nutrition. The plant may partially die. If this is a temporary problem for the bushes, it grows and turns green, then this can ruin the sculpture for many years.

Fertilizer

Fertilize preferably in spring and autumn. At the same time, the autumn fertilizer should not contain nitrogen, and in the spring any complex fertilizer will do.

As mentioned earlier, few of the parasites have boxwood in their teeth. However, a number of parasites live in this plant, the symptoms will be brown, red, knotty swellings on the foliage, holes, twisted lightened leaves, a barely noticeable cobweb and white scabs on the trunk. Depending on the type of disease, they are treated with fungicides and insecticides, as well as pruning, removing the affected areas. At the same time, pruning, rejuvenation, even without diseases, is extremely useful for the bush.

A little care and attention and your yard, garden will be transformed! No bare bushes and thorns, green all year round and any shape you need, boxwood bushes will be a decoration of the yard for many years.